Jean Delannoy

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Jean Delannoy, French filmmaker (born Jan. 12, 1908, Noisy-le-Sec, France—died June 18, 2008, Guainville, France), enjoyed tremendous popularity with French audiences for his films, many of which explored thought-provoking moral and philosophical issues, but he received intense criticism from French New Wave (Nouvelle Vague) directors for focusing on the script rather than imposing his own directorial vision on the final product. Delannoy studied philosophy at the Sorbonne and had stints in journalism, banking, and acting before he was hired (1930) as a film editor at Paramount Studios in Joinville. Four years later he directed Paris-Deauville, the first of more than 70 motion pictures that he wrote and/or directed. In 1939 he began work on Macao, l’enfer du jeu (Gambling Hell), but the German occupation forces ordered the film reshot without Jewish actor-director Erich von Stroheim. Delannoy replaced Stroheim with French actor Pierre Renoir, and the Nazi-approved version of the film was released in 1942. Delannoy, however, kept the original, which he released in 1945 after World War II ended. La Symphonie pastorale (1946) earned the Grand Prix at the 1946 Cannes Festival, and Dieu a besoin des hommes (1950) received awards at both the Venice and Berlin film festivals. His last film was Marie de Nazareth (1995). In 1986 Delannoy was awarded an honorary César Award.

This article was most recently revised and updated by Karen Sparks, Director and Editor, Britannica Book of the Year.

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